Once, when there was
a famine, a rich baker sent for twenty of the poorest children in the town and
said to them, "In this basket there is a loaf for each of you. Take it,
and come back to me every day till God sends us better times."
The hungry children
gathered eagerly about the basket, and quarreled for the bread, because each
wished to have the largest loaf. At last they went away without even thanking
the good man.
But Gretchen, a
poorly dressed little girl, did not quarrel or struggle with the rest, but
remained standing modestly a pace away. When the ill-behaved children had left,
she took the smallest loaf, which alone was left in the basket, kissed the
man's hand, and went home.
The next day the
children were as ill-behaved as before, and poor, timid Gretchen received a
loaf scarcely half the size of the one she got the first day. When she came
home, and her mother cut the loaf open, many new, shining pieces of silver fell
out of it.
The mother was very
much alarmed, and said, "Take the money back to the good man at once, for
it must have got in the dough by accident. Go quickly, Gretchen, go
quickly!"
But when the little
girl gave the rich man her mother's message, he said, "No, no, my child,
it was no mistake. I had the silver pieces put into the smallest loaf to reward
you. Always be contented, peaceable; and grateful as you arc now. Go home, now,
and tell your mother that the money is your own.
Shortly after the
culmination of the Second World War, a devastated city in England began its
heartbreaking and weary work of restoration. In the old city square had stood a
large statue of Jesus Christ with His hands outspread in an attitude of
invitation. On the pedestal were carved the words, "Come unto me.
In the process of
the restoration of the statue, with the aid of master artists and sculptors,
the figure eventually was reassembled, except for the hands of which no
fragments could be discovered anywhere in the surrounding rubble. Someone made
the suggestion that the artists, since the former hands could not be found,
would have to fashion new hands.
Later came a public
protest, couched in the words, "No, leave Him without hands!" So
today, in the public square of that English city, the restored statue of Christ
stands without hands, and on its base are carved the words, "Christ has no
hands but ours!"
At this Christmas
time, let's think of something we can do!
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